


A Thousand Shades

by orphan_account



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, F/M, Fluff, M/M, Romance, based off the idea from kickthepj's short film "color bandits", colorful, lots of colors, mostly a kickthepj based story but some phan and other ships will be heavy, really there will be tons of colors, this is a bit messy but honestly i had so much fun writing it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-15
Updated: 2017-06-15
Packaged: 2018-11-14 09:22:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11205075
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: PJ's color bandit days are long gone. That is until someone comes seeking revenge. Now he must welcome back the part of his past that he's tried to forget as he fights to rescue his old friends and take down the people who are trying to hurt him, even if it means destroying the one thing that all of the Color Bandits would kill for.





	A Thousand Shades

**Author's Note:**

> this heavily kickthepj oriented (as it was based off his short film "color bandits") but there will be plenty of ships such as phan in here

 

The low coughing sound of the vehicle alerted him long before he ever saw it. A slim, obviously used, motor bike, dusted with various vibrant shades, was streaking down the desert, the cycling wheels a blur as it traveled through the miles of dunes, kicking up sand in all directions.

To say the least, he wasn't surprised by its sudden appearance. An old friend always came when times were bad, but he never helped, and eventually they overcame the problem or moved on. He assumed this time it would be no different.

Patiently he waited as they slowly came to stop in front of his almost sand buried shack, their engine giving one last cough before going silent. The figure on the bike climbed off, walking in an almost hurried way towards the feeble structure that was struggling against the mounds of yellow sea.

A helmet and goggles with goggles were removed before a hand pushed back thick blond hair that was a naturally fair but still dusted in places with a nice pink tone. His bright, almost startling, crystal eyes met the man's light green and smirk fixed itself on his lips.

"PJ, you look well. Any tea?"

The peering silence was broken and a smile spread across PJ's face as he drifted almost weightlessly over the sand to give the man a grasping hug.

"Felix! I've missed you." He laughed when he stepped away, dusting off some of the pink shade that had stuck to his bland clothes.

His old friend returned the smile easily before his expression changed to one of serious. Of course. Here comes the favor part.

PJ sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "I'm guessing you'll need to come inside to talk?"

Felix nodded, running another hand through his messy, stained strands. They walked into the small shelter, pushing past the thick cloth that acted as a door and sitting down on thick mats that served as the floor.

PJ could see the suppressed look of disgust on Felix's face, his living situation almost always a topic of discussion when he visited. His current occupied space wasn't the best but it was the most secluded place he could find. It even took his blond friend in front of him almost two years to track him down and even that was with the help of hints he had left behind.

He had made far to many enemies to not be cautious, something that he could never find himself to regret because no matter how much he tried to convince himself otherwise of the fact; a small part of him still loved the excitement of the possibility of a chase.

Tea leaves were boiled over an electric teapot, the generator making an unreliable crackling sound as it was used. The steam wavered throughout the shelter and wrapped a thick blanket of tension around the two young men.

Felix didn't even wait for a cup of tea before he started speaking. That was the first indication to PJ that this time it was different from all the others. The second indication was the thick clouds of determination in his eyes, the look reminding the brunette of how his own eyes used to look in days past.

"Something has been happening in the last couple weeks. I should've come sooner to warn you." Felix's voice was quiet and steady, his gaze never leaving his friend's.

PJ didn't notice his hands curl into fists on his knees, his fingers gripping the thick fabric of his dull gray pants in his hands. His heartbeat was rapid and he could fill it banging against his rib age like it was trying to escape. Never had information concerning his own safety been brought to him in the almost five years since his retirement and it was almost... thrilling.

Felix continued, "I don't know if you remember them, I hardly do myself, but almost a decade ago we stole from this gang called the Tiles."

Of course he remembered. He never forgot a robbery. The one in question happened in their teenage years, when they had first broken off from the main Color Bandits gang and had started off on their own. It had been a short job, with only basic tones stolen but he could still remember the look of pure excitement on Chris's face. The thought of the boy brought a cold hand to PJ's heart and he pulled himself back out of his own mind.

"Of course," He replied. "But why does this concern them? When we stole they were a small group, with barely enough mixtures worth stealing."

Felix nodded, "I know but things have changed. They've grown stronger and have started hitting those who had taken from them in their early years. Eight attacks so far, all of them dead."

Green eyes closed, forehead wrinkled in worry. A strained reply, "How do we know that it's for real? It could be just them trying to scare other gangs in order to gain more power."

Felix tossed his gaze downwards, his voice regretful. "That's what I thought and it cost me. They ambushed the group last night as we were leaving a tavern near Turquoise Plaza."

His breath caught in this throat, "Did something happen? Is anyone hurt?"

Anger was now apparent on the blond's face. "Phil and Marzia were taken." The reply came out sharp and violent before he snapped. "Dammit if only I-I had fucking tried harder. If...if...only..." His voice shook with fury and emotion as he the words disappeared in the air with the steam from the boiling leaves.

To say that he was shocked was beyond the truth, PJ was fucking furious. Somehow he managed to control himself more than Felix. He reached forward and gripped his friend's shoulder, making the other look up at his gaze. "Don't worry. We will get them back."

This was simply different from any other request he had gotten. This mattered. This was worth going back inside himself and retrieving a part he had tried so hard to forget. Chris would understand. The dead were always forgiving, or we liked to believe they are.

Felix nodded, his eyes still holding the steady clouds of determination that now showed in PJ's. "I knew you would help. But there's something else too. Something else that will help us get even."

He didn't hesitate, "What is it?"

"Everlasting color; a thousand shades of the brightest colors imaginable that never fade."

The shock on PJ's face almost overrides the anger. Almost.

Felix continued, "I know I didn't believe it myself until last night. I was hit." A sleeve is pushed up to show a splash of bright blistering blue traveling up his arm from his wrist to his elbow. It was the brightest shade that PJ had ever seen, so beautiful that he almost didn't want to look away, but underneath the color was the damaging effects. His skin was morphing and throbbing with split tissues and dripping with thick blemishes the size of coins.

"Holy shit," PJ breathed out, "That's insane. How is that possible?"

The sleeve was pushed back down and an obvious jolt of pain shoved back along with it. "No idea but we'll find out. We'll destroy the monsters who ever even thought to mess with color bandits."

Color bandits. Two words. It's strange really, how twelve simple letters put together could make PJ's heart flutter and skip a beat. He loved those words.

Another look was passed between the two comrades and they leaned forward, gripping each other's hands as they shook on it. A silent promise crossed between them.

As he pulled away, that's when PJ noticed it wasn't silent anymore. The generator had thrummed to a stop, needing to rest and the water was just coming down from the boil. But a new noise had pushed through his focus, igniting his consciousness.

The sound of a motor. No one else had visited him in almost five years except for Felix and all his supplies were stolen miles away so no one could follow him through the shifting sand dunes.

In less than a second, both of them were on their feet with Felix pulling out a communicator.

"Followed?" PJ shot at him.

"Apparently. They must've kept their distance and used the sand as cover." He spoke some hushed words into the device before flicking it closed. "The others are meeting us back in Light City."

The brunette nodded, already shuffling through a chest he had his underneath the bed. Inside were supplies that he quickly shoved in a pack before sprinting outside to where Felix was waiting with his bike.

A car was shooting towards them from the distance, their arrival seconds away. It was a bright red, a man in checkered colors on the top with a shiny object glimmering his hands.

"Go. Now." PJ commanded, slinging his pack on his shoulders as he climbed on the back of the bike, gripping his friend's shoulders to hang on.

The bike roared to life and sprung forward, taking off as the car shot behind them, only meters away. The sudden jerk hit PJ right in the stomach and he almost flew off but he somehow managed to tighten his grip on Felix.

A loud bang echoed behind them, making them both wince as the sound attacked their ears. A cloud of forest green rushed above them.

PJ pushed his pack above his head as Felix gunned the motor more, trying to shoot them forward. A thimbles worth of the sickening green landed on the edge of the pack, immediately igniting it in flickering emerald flames.

"Holy-" PJ gasped out, letting it go as it flew into the direction of the car behind them. It knocked into the guy on top of the car, jerking him backwards into the sea of sand.

The car spun to a stop as they went forward, the distance between them expanding until the object couldn't be seen in the distance.

"Oh my god." Felix breathed out.

PJ sighed in relief, laughter following. "I agree."

They traveled hundreds of miles at top speed until they could make out ahead, the tall spirals of skyscrapers and the glowing fireflies of light. The branches of civilization expanded over the landscape, the tallest buildings looking like they were grazing the stars as bands of light circled everywhere.

"The City of Light, aka the hidden location of all the Color Bandits." Felix said softly and PJ hummed in response.

He was home.


End file.
